sions of infantry to Gravelly Church, and open communication with the rest of the army. Another division went to support McKenzie's cavalry, which had advanced on the Ford road up to Hatcher's Run. At 10 p.m. a general cannonade was begun along the whole line by order of General Grant, and continued through the night.
At daybreak on the 2d April there was a general assault along the Confederate line by the 2d, 6th, 9th, 24th, and 25th corps. The fire of the enemy was destructive and retarded the advance at several points, but could not stop it. The 6th corps carried the works in its front, and one division (Seymour's), broke through to the South-Side railway and began to tear it up. The 24th corps was also successful, and so were the 2d and 9th. The 9th had probably the hardest fighting of the day, in which it captured Fort Mahone, on the Jerusalem plank road; the enemy tried to retake it, and was nearly successful, when the 6th corps came to the aid of the 9th, and the dearly obtained position was saved. A Confederate brigade (Harris'), which defended one of the forts, was 250 strong at the beginning of the battle, and lost 220 men before it was over.
Along nearly the whole line the outer defences were entirely in the hands of the assailants, and though Lee still held the city of Petersburg he saw that his position was no longer tenable. Accordingly, at 10.30 a.m. he telegraphed as follows to President Davis:
My lines are broken in three places. Richmond must be evacuated this evening.
Mr. Davis was in church when this dispatch was handed to him. He rose and walked out quietly, and the service went on as though nothing had happened. But there was a deathly silence over the whole congregation, and every one felt that something awful was about to happen. After the services were over the news spread
